I believe that imagination is stronger than knowledge. That myth is more potent than history. That dreams are more powerful than facts. That hope always triumphs over experience. That laughter is the only cure for grief. And I believe that love is stronger than death. – Ralph Fulghum

Saturday, December 19, 2015 (DAY 1,383 – 1,401)It's been an extreme exercise in nerd- patience of waiting impatiently for nearly three-years since hearing the news that, In 2012, The Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm™ and announced production of a sequel trilogy that spread throughout the galaxy faster than Kim Kardashian's latest InstagramⓇ selfie! On a cold and windy day in Seoul, I'm walking with a step of swagger my homie Shebly 'Waddup' Eades, another Korean Adoptee (#KAD) from Ohio, as we are ready to be awakened by the force of the newest Star Wars film! Arriving at the theater for the 5:20pm showing, I've already purchased us tickets, and while most Koreans could seem to careless for the greatest galactic story of good versus evil, we are stoked beyond belief. Every time I told or asked if any of my Korean friends would like to join us or if they were planning to see the most anticipated film of 2015, they always surprisingly responded with, "Why do Americans love Star Wars so much?" I seriously considered giving them a five-fingers to the face while simultaneously dropping my jaw! How dare you sir or madam, question the awesomeness of the Millennium Falcon, BB-8, Yoda, and all of the endless terminology that should be taught in the Korean education system! It was moments like these that I truly wish lightsabers existed so I could show them the power of the force (bahahahahaha).

Arriving early to the theater, even though we had assigned seats–which I've found to be a common practice at movie theaters in both Costa Rica and Thailand–Shelbs admitted that she could not enjoy a movie truly unless she had the largest tub of popcorn imaginable. You silly American! She offered to share her enormous family-size tub of an even mixture of cheese and carmel popcorn, but each time I attempted to reach out to snag even one kernel there seemed to be an odd growling sound as my fingers grew closer to the top of the bucket. Look out yo, this girl is serious about believing that sharing is NOT caring, haha (I can only hear her laughing really hard when she reads this).

The practice of assigned seating at movie theaters has it's pros and cons. It's great because you don't need to arrive hours early to premiere showings just to have a seat that's not in the front row where you'll end up with a neck pain for the next week. However, as we were waiting to enter the theater while it was being cleaned from the previous showing, we randomly found a few of her American friends, Chesney and Ashely, that just happen to decide to also see Star Wars at exactly the same theater! This is where the con comes in to play, as we would have loved to sit together as a group and I would've found myself looking like a P-I-M-P with three ladies, but this wasn't possible. Before we knew it, we were heading into the theater geeked out and ready to hear that first sound of....duuunn-da-da-dun! C'mon man, you know what that incredible sound it like as it flows up from your stomach to the smile on your face! And if you can't, then shame on you and take another listen right here my friend!

Geeked out, before entering the theater!

After the film, of course we had to reunite with Chesney and Ashley to discuss how awesome the film was and decided to go to dinner at a nearby local restaurant enjoying some traditional Korean food and drinks of samgyeopsal (삼겹살) and soju (소주). After dinner we decided to walk around Hongdae (홍대) and since this area is notorious for street performers and musicians because of the liberal arts university in the area, we came across two guys doing some pretty amazing soccer ball tricks, which is the video I shot from above. It still erks me that YouTube™ flags videos when copyrighted music, which I understand is related to copyright laws and contractual issues from working in broadcast television for 12-years and dealing with contracts on almost a daily basis as the Program Manager for HDNet (now AXStv), but I mean c'mon you can't figure out an algorithm to differentiate between the audio channel levels and how they are recorded?! I say, BOOO-URNS to you YouTube™!

A beautiful night in Hongdae (홍대) that really makes you feel the holiday season!

About the Author

My name is Troy and I gave up a promising 12-year career to travel the world! Now after more than 4-years of continuous global travel, I've lived an incredible life and my goal is to inspire others to achieve their dreams!